Bloom
by Repcal
Summary: A young trainer named Ochre dreaming of one day becoming a Pokémon Ranger has finally gotten the chance to prove himself so that he can venture off to unseen parts of the world.
1. Book I - Celadon: Foundation

**Book I - Celadon**

Sun streaked through the bedroom as young Ochre, 18 years old, was fast asleep underneath his covers, a tuft of golden brown hair could be seen glowing from underneath. A sound of rustling could be heard from the closet. A Tangela flopped out, carrying a pair of pants, a jacket, and shoes.

"Tangela!"

The Tangela hopped up on the bed and began to slowly prod at the young man as he waved the vines away. The Tangela could be heard becoming more and more aggressive in its voice.

"TANG!"

A cracking sound followed by a loud scream was heard which seemed to resonate throughout the ranch house.

"Fine, Pascal, fine. I'm up." Ochre rubbed his arm, where a welt was already forming. "You excited about today, I guess?"

The Tangela nodded in agreement as he began to shove clothes into Ochre's face.

"Not yet, not yet. Let me get woken up first."

The Tangela moved a vine back behind it as if preparing for another strike.

Ochre quickly backed up against the far corner of his bed with his arm covering his face. "I'll hurry, I'll hurry!"

The Tangela let out a proud, "Tang!" Before jumping off the bed and running downstairs.

Ochre sighed and mumbled to himself, "You'd think that he was the trainer…"

He still stretched his arms up wide and took a look outside of the window. The sun added a warm tint to his already tanned skin. His father was already outside with his mother, tending to the Nidoran. They lived on a ranch, the NidoRanch, located on the outskirts of Celadon City. He lived on the ranch with his father, Crim, his mother, Isabel, as well as his kid brother, Burgand. Burgand had been much more into the ranch life, whereas Ochre never wanted to take on the reins of the ranch once his father grew too old. He wanted adventure. His mother tended to take his side on this, as she encouraged him to find his calling and use his talents as he saw fit. It was because of her that he was going on his trip today.

Ochre got dressed in the clothes that Pascal had picked out for him, shuffled out of his room and trotted down the stairs where Pascal was waiting for him. "Don't get your vines in a knot, we'll go in good time." Ochre grinned as he stepped out on the porch. His mother was holding a female Nidoran in her arms.

"I guess Pascal didn't let you sleep on your big day, did he?" his mother asked, giggling.

Ochre shook his head. "I guess he knew how important today was after all of the training we've been doing." He looked over at his pokémon, who was still anxiously awaiting Ochre to tell him that they were all set to leave.

"It's not every day that Erika allows a resident at her gym." She grinned, "I still can't believe that I'm letting my son stay at a gym full of young women…," her giggle turned into a cackle, "But of course since she's an old friend of mine, she'll be certain to report any misbehavior on my eldest son's part!" She snorted before clearing her throat and returning to her previous maternal state. "I am proud of you, though, Ochre."

Ochre's face turned red before he went in for a hug with his mother. The Nidoran had since jumped out of her arms and scurried around his father, who was feeding the mother Nidoqueen in the barn. Crim turned around to see his son outside with Isabel. He gave the Nidoqueen a couple of pats on the head and jogged up toward the patio.

"You goin', son?" Crim asked, placing a hand on Ochre's shoulder.

"Yeah, I guess I'll get on the road." Ochre looked back at the house as Pascal rushed out off the porch and waddled toward one of the ranch's trucks, hopping in the passenger's seat.

Crim looked up at the house and yelled, "Burgand! Your big brother is leaving!"

A loud thump could be heard from the window Crim yelled at as footsteps rushed down the stairs and outside. "Bye, bye, big brother!" Burgand ran to give his brother a hug, who picked him up and mussed his hair.

"You take care of Mom and Dad, 'kay?" Ochre asked his little brother.

"'Kay!" The 12-year-old replied.

Ochre nodded to his family as he proceeded to the truck Pascal was hopping up and down in.

His mother called out, "Are you sure you don't want to stay for breakfast?!"

The young man shook his head. "There's no time! There's an adventure to begin!"

With that, he started the truck, and sped down the dusty road away from the ranch, and toward Celadon City.


	2. Sow

Ochre eased through the traffic in Celadon City. He had been in the city many times, since this is where they mainly did business for the ranch. They'd buy food for the pokémon here, and then they would come to the market to sell or donate them. Many times, Ochre had seen a Nidoran leave their ranch to become a ferocious Nidoking that would compete in the pokémon league.

But today was not a day for the family business. Today was all Ochre, and it was his first time embarking on a journey with his pokémon. Ochre had a dream of becoming a Pokémon Ranger one day, but in order to achieve that dream, he could no longer stay in Celadon City. While the city offered lots of opportunity, traveling would be one of the major aspects of his quest and he needed some way to prove himself.

This is where the residency at the Celadon Gym would come into play. Ochre was already seen as a gifted trainer. So much so, that Erika, the Celadon City Gym Leader, wanted him to come and train at her gym for a while. After he'd proven himself there, he was free to go off on whatever adventures he desired.

Ochre pulled up to the Celadon Gym and he and Tangela hopped out, as they went up to the information desk inside. A young girl about his age was standing behind the counter.

"Welcome to Celadon Gym! If you'll just fill out this information…," the young girl said before looking up and catching Ochre's eyes.

"Oh, Ochre!" She blushed, "We've been expecting you. I'll go ahead and let Erika know that you're here!"

The girl turned towards her monitor, and after what seemed like an eternity, Erika's flushed face appeared on the screen. "Sorry to bother you, Erika! Ochre just walked in the door."

Erika took a few breaths before responding. "That's… great!" She huffed, wiping the sweat off of her brow. "Send him on back, we'll go ahead and bring him in the work out with us." The phone clicked. The girl behind the counter giggled a little before pointing Ochre in the direction of the work out facilities.

"I thought this was a Pokémon Gym, Pascal. Not _that_ kind of gym." Ochre remarked, toward his Tangela, who was waddling beside of him.

Ochre proceeded past the room that had "Battle Area" written above it. He stood for a moment in observation.

"I wish we could just go in there and start the real training." Ochre remarked.

"You'll need your basics first." A feminine voice called out behind him. Ochre spun around to see Erika herself standing in front of him. Her hair was tied back into a ponytail and she was dressed in black sweatpants and a sports bra that sported the Celadon City Gym logo, not her usual kimono that he'd so often seen her wearing during gym challenges. "You didn't think all I did was arrange flowers, did you?" Erika laughed, still saturated and somewhat pink in her face. She was around 35 years old, only about 10 years younger than his mother.

"You've grown up so much since I've last seen you!" Erika giggled to herself and she could tell Ochre was blushing. "How is Isabel doing?"

Ochre's face continued to turn a bright crimson as he answered. "She… she's fine." Pascal lightly smacked Ochre's back.

"You know, I've actually known your mother since I first became a gym leader." Erika said, as they continued down the hall.

"That's what she's always told me, but I never really knew much about it. I thought it was pretty cool that she knew a gym leader." Ochre replied.

"Well, I'll tell you more about it later. Let's just say I think it's 'pretty cool' that I know her." With a slight giggle, Erika opened the door to her workout facilities. The room was full of women, all dressed in a similar fashion to Erika. They were doing various exercises as well as their grass-type pokémon. One girl was doing pull-ups with her Bulbasaur, while another girl was over at a punching bag with her Gloom.

"Surprised?" Erika asked.

"Yeah, a little." Ochre replied, still red in the face.

"There's a lot more where this came from. Why don't you go in the locker room and change into a uniform? You belong here now." Erika smiled, pointed him to the locker room, and ran off back to work with another girl who was lifting weights.

Ochre proceeded into the locker room where he had his name written on one of the lockers with a smiley face next to it. He opened it up and inside were shorts and a tank similar to Erika's outfit, still with the same Celadon City Logo. Ochre changed and he and Pascal looked at each other before Pascal reached out a vine to give him a high-five. "We're here, Pascal! We're going to go all the way to the top!" Pascal let out a proud "Tangela!" before they both waddled out of the locker room and back to the workout facility.

Ochre sat himself down at a weight bench and started to adjust the weights before a young girl appeared before him, with a long, light brown ponytail.

"What do you think you're doing, Newbie?" she called out.

"I was uh, fixing to start working out." Ochre replied.

"You haven't even stretched yet! Let alone gotten the initial treatment." She yelled at him.

"Initial treatment?" Ochre asked.

Erika noticed the commotion and jogged over to Ochre. "I see you've met your partner!"

"Partner?!" The two yelled in unison before glaring at each other.

"Ochre, I'd like you to meet Jade. She arrived yesterday evening. Jade, this is Ochre." The two of them looked at each other, and immediately averted their eyes elsewhere while murmuring, "Nice to meet you…"

"You two are my newest residents, so you'll both be training together. I always pair up my resident trainers, and since you both have similar aspirations, you'll be sure to be accountable for the other." Erika grinned and snickered to herself as she could tell they did not meet in the best circumstances.

Ochre stood up and faced Jade. "So, what is the 'initial treatment'?" He asked before turning to face Erika.

Erika's face warped into a devious grin. "You're going to run around the battlefield 100 times!" She tilted her head to the side as her eyes grew wider.

Pascal looked at his feet and back up at Erika.

"You, too." She almost snapped toward the Tangela, who promptly ran back toward Ochre and hid behind his legs.


	3. Enrich

Ochre was drenched in sweat by the end of his 30th lap. After the 5th lap he picked up Pascal and carried him for several more. He was reluctantly greeted by Jade after he had stopped running as he sat on the side of the battlefield, his legs sprawled out in front of him and resting on his arms.

Jade threw him a towel, herself just as soaked from head to toe.

"I thought you'd already gone through this?" Ochre asked.

"I _did._" She replied, making a fist and lighting tapping the front of her forehead. "It doesn't get any easier, rookie."

"Aren't you just as new?" Ochre began to stand, giving up halfway once he realized his legs were not about to cooperate with him.

"Yeah, but I knew what to expect. Besides, I have a goal in mind. Someone like you doesn't seem like you have enough aspirations to compete here." She snidely remarked. "Oh yeah, since we're partners, Erika already told me you wanted to be a Ranger. Is that right?"

Ochre nodded. "Yeah, that's the plan."

Jade huffed at him, turning her nose up. "Don't you think you're giving in a little easy for someone who wants to be a Pokémon Ranger? I didn't give up until after _fifty_ laps."

Ochre was steaming. _Who does she think she is, telling me how more capable she is?! _Ochre groaned under the strain of his legs and wiped the sweat from his face, starting his jogging pace back up.

Jade looked at Ochre, scoffing at his attempt to show off. _I won't tell him that Erika told me to tell him to take a break. We'll see how good he seems to her once he's worn out. That will make certain that Erika concentrates on practicing with me and me only! _Jade slunk off, giggling to herself.

Ochre continued to run around the battlefield. He had already picked up Pascal again by the 45th lap, who seemed slightly more motivated to run after Jade's heckling.

A few more hours passed, and Ochre doggedly finished his 100th and final lap around the battlefield. He was exhausted and his legs were on fire, but he smiled to himself and even Pascal found some more energy in his to give a cheerful look of pride toward him. Ochre moved out of the battlefield and back into the workout room where he found Erika and Jade.

"Ochre, where have you been?!" Erika asked, seemingly stunned.

"Running my laps?" He asked, puzzled.

"Ochre, you don't mean to tell me that you actually…, you ran 100 laps?"

"Well, absolutely…," Ochre eyebrows raised.

"Oh my goodness!" Erika jumped up from her workout bench and put her hands on Ochre's shoulders, glaring back at Jade.

"Jade, didn't you tell to stop for today?!" She yelled toward Jade, her eyes narrowed.

"I… I might have forgotten." Jade replied. If she had had a tail, it would be between her legs.

"Ochre, you weren't intended to run the whole 100 laps in one day. That's… that's insane!" Erika screamed. "But… on the other hand…," she gained a mischevious look on her face.

"Jade!" She yelled.

Jade stood up immediately, approaching her from behind. "You are to finish your 100 laps now."

Jade's eyes widened "Ye… yes ma'am!" She responded as she quickly made herself unseen.

"Wait, Jade!" She yelled back at her right as she was about out of the door. Jade turned around promptly.

"I should kick you out." Erika said in a disappointed tone. Jade nodded as she proceed out the door.

"Go get some rest, Ochre. You've certainly deserved it. I must apologize for Jade's behavior. She's competitive to a fault, I think." Erika added.

"I think she might have been right, though." Ochre answered.

"About what?"

"She said that I lacked aspiration. I guess in some ways I still do. I'm not sure if I have what it takes to be a Ranger."

"I'll be the judge of that. It takes a lot more than physical strength to be a Pokémon Ranger. Hopefully you'll both learn that." Erika backed away from Ochre and went to spot a girl lifting. "Go rest." She insisted, shooing him away.

Ochre nodded himself, and proceeded down the hallway to the dormitories. He noticed that their names were listed on a number of rooms. Ochre scanned down the list. _Room 211: Ochre and Jade. _Ochre almost smacked himself in the face. "Are you serious!?" He blurted aloud.

Ochre had fallen asleep, collapsed on his bed with Pascal at his side, who was curled up into and even tighter ball that usual. He awoke to the sound of his door opening. Jade entered the room, just as drenched in sweat as before as she scanned Ochre. "Did I wake you?" She plopped herself on her own bed, which was in the opposite corner of the room from his. "Damn show off." She grumbled.

Ochre sat up as he snapped back at her. "You're the one who lied to me about all of that."

"I didn't think you'd still be able to do it." She replied, with her eyes still closed.

"Well, I did, and so did you. So I guess we're even now, huh?"

"Whatever." Jade remarked. "Just let me be."

"With pleasure!" Ochre yelled before falling back on his pillow and falling asleep as well.

"I'm sorry." Jade whispered inaudibly while Ochre slept soundly.


	4. Feed

Ochre was awaken early the next morning by a knock at the door. He was still dressed in his gym workout clothes since he had collapsed onto his bed and fell asleep for the evening. The sun was not pouring through the windows yet and it was still pitch black outside. He stumbled to the door and opened it to find Erika, already dressed in what seemed to be a much cleaner outfit than his own.

"I hope you slept well?" She asked, almost cheerfully. Ochre nodded in affirmation as he looked over to Jade, who was stirring as well. "Both of you are to meet me in the battlefield in fifteen minutes." She waved goodbye and quickly departed.

Ochre stepped over beside of Jade's bed and let out a blunt, "You heard her."

Jade bolted up, still obviously peeved at Ochre from the day before. "You don't have to be so rude about it."

Ochre rolled his eyes. He kept silent, but his thoughts still raced. _You're really one to talk about being rude._

Pascal hopped out of the bed, seemingly much more energized than the previous day.

"Doesn't your Tangela ever go inside its pokéball? I've seen it out since you've been here." Jade asked, changing the subject.

"Oh, when he needs to be." Ochre answered curtly. "I noticed I haven't seen your pokémon."

"You'll see them in due time." Jade gave Ochre a wink, almost playfully.

The two entered the battlefield which they were all-too-familiar with at this point to be greeted once again by Erika, standing on the opposite side. "Since you've both gotten _extra _cardio done yesterday, we're going to take a break with some pokémon techniques. I've seen you battle separately before, but never at the same time… or together."

Jade and Ochre looked at each other with another dreadful stare. "Do you mean…?"

Erika held her hand up to her mouth and giggled a little as two other girls dressed in workout uniforms came out. "Meet Élodie and Vivian." The two girls gave a little wave as the reached for a pokéball a piece. They threw their respective pokéballs; in front of Élodie a Quilladin appeared, and in front of Vivian a Gogoat.

"I'm sure that neither of you have really seen these pokémon much. Élodie and Vivian are both from the Kalos region, and they've traveled a long way to come study at the gym. I thought I'd let you both know about their aspirations and teamwork." Erika winked at the pair.

"Go Pascal!" Ochre's Tangela jumped into action in front of him.

Jade threw her own pokéball and a Leafeon appeared. "Alright, Charity!" She gritted her teeth together as the four trainers faced off.

Erika had moved to the side of the field to oversee the match. "Begin!" She yelled.

Élodie commanded her Quilladin. "Dexter, use Rollout!" The Quilladin curled up into a ball and started to charge itself toward Pascal.

"Pascal, look out!" Ochre screamed as the Tangela attempted to jump to the side but wasn't able to move fast enough and he was hit by the Qulladin sharply and knocked to the side. The rolling pokémon went around and started to head up for a normal pass.

"Charity, use Quick Attack!" Ochre's eyes lit up but then became disappointed as the Leafon started charging toward the Gogoat, who prompty jumped out of the way and countered with Double-Edge, causing Charity to fly backward.

The meanwhile, Dexter had come around and hit Pascal with another round of Rollout, which had grown stronger. The Tangela had this time managed to land on its feed. "Pascal, use Bind!" Ochre commanded as vines shot out from Pascal and managed to stop Dexter from its ambush.

Vivian looked at the trapped Quilladin and yelled, "Bulldoze, Artemis!" The Gogoat then held its head down and charged full speed toward Pascal.

"Charity, use Leaf Blade!" Jade yelled as the Leafeon ran toward the Quilladin. Artemis's Bulldoze landed a direct hit on Pascal, causing him to release Dexter from his Bind and Charity's leaf blade struck nothing but air.

"Take down!" Élodie and Vivian cried in unison as Artemis and Dexter came at Charity from both sides, promptly knocking her out as well.

"Charity and Pascal are unable to battle. Élodie and Vivan are the winners!" Erika announced as the two girls embraced each other with cheers.

Erika approached Ochre and Jade, shaking her head. "You both are talented separately, but if you can't work with each other, all that talent is going to go to waste. You need to understand each other better. You have to _trust_ each other."

Ochre wanted to protest. _How am I supposed to trust her after she lies to me as soon as I meet her?_ He continued to glare at Jade, who couldn't bite her tongue in a similar fashion.

"Erika, you just need to give me a competent partner! Charity would have done fine if Pascal hadn't gotten in the way!" Jade argued.

Erika continued to shake her head. "Both of you need some alone time together. You won't be able to solve any problems unless you can both cooperate. I think you should both head to the Serenity Garden. I sincerely hope that I haven't wasted my time on either or worse yet, both of you." Erika stormed out of the battlefield and slammed the door, resuming her training as Élodie and Vivian followed.

Jade let out a loud sigh and started to head toward the door with Charity. "Let's just get this over with." She said, motioning for Ochre to follow her.


	5. Sprout

Jade and Ochre entered a large area which was open to sunlight, presumably in the middle of the gym. There was no ceiling above them and the heat from the sun warmed their faces as they made their way through the flora. Exotic flowers, bushes, and trees were seen all around them as they could hear the chirping and tweeting of pidgeys in the trees above them. Ochre couldn't help but feel a sense of calm flowing through him as they reached a clearing in an area of the garden with a few stone benches.

The two of them sat on benches opposite each other in silence for several minutes until Jade spoke up.

"Okay, Erika isn't gonna let us do any training until we can work together, so that means that you'll just need to make sure you can defend Charity until we win, deal?" Jade tilted her head to the side.

Ochre didn't want to say anything back. He swallowed and managed to croak out. "That's not really working together."

"Well, it wouldn't work any other way with you being so timid all the time, it seems." She threw her hands up in the air. "I don't see any other way to deal with a weakling like you."

Ochre stood straight up. "What's your deal!?" He yelled. "Don't you have anything better to do than to point out all of my faults?!" His face had turned a bright crimson at this point.

Jade only managed to let out a huff before looking to the side. Ochre sat back down and they both continued in silence for several more minutes.

"Why are you so shy, anyway? Scared of girls?" Jade asked, seeming to be genuinely curious.

"It's not that." Ochre replied. It was true that he hadn't really made any kind of effort to talk to anyone that didn't talk to him since the short stay that he had at the gym. "I just don't really like talking to people."

"I think that's your problem, kid." Jade stood up, walking over to Ochre and sitting down beside of him. "You need more confidence, and if you're too scared to talk to people, how could you command authority over your pokémon?"

"Pascal listens to me!" Ochre protested, looking at his Tangela, who nodded in agreement.

"I wouldn't listen to you." Jade remarked with a snide leer. "You have to have a commanding presence, Ochre. That's the key to being a good trainer."

Ochre rolled his eyes. "And I suppose that you have a commanding presence?"

Jade immediately stood up in front of Ochre, placing her hands on her hips. "You're darn right! Stand up!"

Ochre stood up, facing her.

"See? Look at that. I say two words and you follow them immediately."

Ochre looked at himself and back at her. "That was… But…"

Jade laughed a little, seemingly cooling her hothead. "I'm just pulling your leg. But you get what I'm saying? I honestly think you're probably an O.K. trainer. You're in good physical shape, too." She put her hands on his shoulders, giving them a little squeeze. "You just let yourself get pushed around, man." She put her hands to her side and sat back down.

"Okay, you're right." Ochre admitted, "So I'll just be commanding right now and tell you that you're way too bossy and all in all seem like a pretty terrible person."

"A terrible… person?" Jade spoke softly and looked at the ground. She could put up with being called names and being told that she's bossy or rude. But judging her actual worth as a human being wasn't something she was used to. Tears started to well up in Jade's eyes as she looked around at the beautiful garden. She wondered how in the world she could feel so sad in such a beautiful place. "How could you say something like that?"

"When someone points out every fault that you have and doesn't apologize for it, it's pretty easy." Ochre coldly replied.

"I'm sorry, happy?" She snapped back.

"I guess." Ochre answered, followed by more silence.

"Growing up on a ranch didn't really lend itself to socializing. The only people I could talk to for a long time were my family, and they didn't always agree with me." Ochre said, looking at the ground. "There aren't a lot of people that seem to 'get' me. I guess it just kind of makes me sick of being told about why people don't get me, or that there's something wrong with the way that I act."

"I just….," Jade started to speak, interrupting herself to breathe for a moment. "I just don't really like to trust people, so I want to make sure that they'll do like they're supposed to."

"So you think bossing people around works better than just being nice to them and trusting them that they'll cooperate?" Ochre asked.

"Well…, yeah." Jade looked over at Ochre's hand. "I just want to be the best and have everyone acknowledge it." Tears started to stream down her face. "I was told my entire life that I was a loser and would never amount to anything, and now I can prove them all wrong."

"Charity and I always lost pokémon battles at school, and people told us we'd never be able to win anything. One day I managed to win a pokémon battle, when Charity was still an Eevee. They accused me of cheating and they hurt us pretty bad. I wasn't able to go to school for a long time after that." Jade sniffed. "Once I went back, I decided that I wouldn't let it happen again. The tables turned and I was the best, no questions."

Ochre put his hand on Jade's back, in an effort to console the girl he had just called a terrible human being. "I know you're good."

Jade looked up at Ochre. "Really?"

Ochre couldn't help but let out a little chuckle. "Well, yeah. I know you're bossy and maybe arrogant, but it's not without reason. You're a really good trainer."

Jade put her head on Ochre's shoulder, starting to giggle. "You're not bad, either, honestly. Probably almost as good as me." She paused, "I'd say you'd make a good Ranger."

Ochre felt a sense of pride that he wasn't used to. While his family had supported his wishes to go into the Pokémon Ranger Corps, he felt almost as if he had somewhat disappointed his family by not continuing to work on the ranch like his little brother. "You would, too." He answered.

"I know." Jade answered quickly, with no hesitation.

The two trainers continued to laugh as Pascal looked on with a puzzled look on his face. Jade and Ochre turned to face one another, and then quickly moved to opposite sides of the bench, their faces slightly red. "Well, what do you say we give it another shot, but maybe work together?" Jade asked, extending her hand.

"I… I'd like that." Ochre replied, shaking Jade's hand rather tightly.


	6. Light

Ochre and Jade both woke up early that morning to get ready for the busy day ahead of them. They were both already up and dressed when Erika greeted them with her usual wake up call.

Jade opened the door with Ochre right behind her.

"You both seem a bit more enthusiastic this morning. I trust you had a productive time in the Serenity Garden?" Erika asked, tilting her head to the side and grinning.

The two of them nodded, and Erika led them back to the battlefield, where Élodie and Vivian were awaiting them, Dexter and Artemis sparring with each other as well.

"Do we get to have a rematch?" Jade asked, clenching her fists together.

Erika held her hand up to her mouth and giggled. "I suppose if Vivan and Élodie are up for it."

Élodie flipped her hair behind her shoulder. "I suppose we could try once more." Dexter jumped in front of her immediately, followed immediately by Artemis stepping beside of him.

Jade and Ochre both sent out Charity and Pascal, who looked as if they had a renewed vigor between them. Jade looked over to Ochre and gave him a high-five before taking her place beside of him.

Erika looked at the two teams and nodded. "This will have the same rules as before. Whichever team knocks out the other team's pokémon first will be the winners. Let the battle begin!"

Élodie promptly started by commanding, "Dexter, use rollout on Pascal!" The Quilladin curled up into a ball, rolling in place before charging toward Ochre's Tangela.

Ochre yelled, "Pascal, dodge it!" Pascal moved to the side as before while Dexter missed, circling around once more for another pass.

Jade grinned as she screamed, "Charity, use Sand Attack!" The Leafeon caused a cloud of sand to blind Dexter, who managed to miss second time, running into the wall of the battlefield, falling backward in a daze and falling back, knocked out.

Vivian looked on, commanding her Gogoat to once again use Bulldoze. Artemis charged toward the pair of pokémon. Ochre looked at Pascal, shouting, "Bind!" The Tangela's vines grew out and started to wrap around the Gogoat, whose charging slowed exponentially until finally coming to a complete stop in front of the Tangela.

While caught in the vines, Jade commanded Charity to use Solar Beam, which caused a dazzling ray of light to shoot out of Charity's mouth knocking Artemis out of Pascal's vines, and knocking her out as well.

"Artemis and Dexter are unable to battle. Ochre and Jade are the winners!" Erika announced with a proud gleam in her eyes. Jade ran over to Ochre, who pulled her into a hug and she kissed his cheek.

Élodie and Vivian withdrew their pokémon, looking defeated but satisfied at the two trainers, nodding toward them to admit defeat.

Jade was let down by Ochre and she looked at Erika mischievously. "So, when do we get to beat you?"

Erika's pride grew. "You'll have your chance soon enough." Erika walked off the battlefield, looking between Ochre and Jade, giving them each a wink.


	7. Growth

Jade and Ochre were both sitting down for lunch together in the Gym Lounge after their victory against Élodie and Vivian. Various trainers would appear, some seemingly just getting up and others coated in sweat so common seen at the gym at this point. Jade continued to recount the short battle and discuss with Ochre how she couldn't understand how they didn't beat them the first time.

"It was like they weren't even trying!" Jade exclaimed, in between a bite of her sandwich. "I think either they aren't as good as Erika made them out to be or…," Jade paused mid-sentence.

Ochre looked up, in order to see what had caused her to stop speaking. "Or?" He asked

"Or we're just an amazing team! Though, it certainly helps to have amazing pokémon." She affirmed, looking at Charity and Tangela, who were also sharing some of the formulated grass-pokémon Pokémon Food who overheard her, nodding with glee in agreement.

Suddenly, one of the trainer residents burst into the lounge, screaming, "Erika is accepting a challenge! They is going to be a gym battle in 15 minutes!" The girl bolted out of the door as soon as she entered, followed by a herd of other trainers. Ochre and Jade looked at each other, and immediately joined the crowd in heading to the observation area. The battlefield only had the challenger, a young man presumably a few years older than Ochre.

Jade and Ochre both sat themselves down, when Jade leaned over, "It's always great to be able to witness a gym battle, especially when you're here to challenge her yourself." The battlefield quieted as Élodie stepped out on the side of the battlefield, holding her hand up to signal the beginning of a match.

Erika stepped out from the opposite side of the arena, dressed in a dazzling light green kimono. She didn't look at all like she did earlier that day, taking special care to make herself look as gorgeous as possible for her match. Ochre's mouth turned into a smile as he looked on to Erika, admiring her looks as well as the confidence she held proudly displayed on her face. He only wished that he could display the kind of command she held on the battlefield.

"This match will be against Erika, the Gym Leader and the Challenger, Jasper." Élodie began to explain, her Kalosian accent could be heard clearly. "Upon the Challenger's request, only two Pokémon will be used by each trainer. The first trainer to render both of the opponent's pokémon unable to battle will be declared the winner. Let the battle begin!"

A smirk ran across Jasper's face as he threw his first pokéball and yelled, "Go, Jazzy!" Following by a Charmeleon appearing in a bright flash of light. Erika more calmly took a pokéball, kissed it, and then threw it, a Exeggutor appeared, stomping its feet a couple of times before crouching down.

"Use Flamethrower!" The Charmeleon reared its head back before unleashing a barrage of embers toward the Exeggutor, hitting it directly and causing a large explosion of smoke. Once the smoke cleared, all that was left was a small doll version of Exeggutor, with the actual pokémon nowhere in sight

"It used Substitute!" Jasper exclaimed as the Exeggutor appeared from seemingly thin air. It seemed as if nothing was going to happen on the battlefield until Erika's face grew fierce and her eyebrows narrowed, "Egg Bomb." She said somewhat softly, as the Exeggutor leaned backward, and quickly forward, hurling a large egg toward the Charmeleon which exploded on contact, knocking the Charmelon out."

"Charmeleon is unable to battle!" Élodie proclaimed, "Exeggutor is the winner of this round!"

Jasper held out his pokéball and withdrew Charmeleon, looking at the pokéball for what seemed an eternity before picking another one and throwing it out. A Spearow appeared this time, flapping its wings above the battlefield. "Use Razor Wind!" The Spearow flapped its wings harder and harder. "Confusion." Erika commanded, as the Exeggutor stomped its feet on the ground, almost dancing while staring the Spearow down. The Spearow let out one final flap to use Razor Wind, only in the opposite than intended direction.

"Maron! What are you doing?!" Jasper yelled. "Use Quick Attack!" The Spearow swooped down toward Exeggutor, missing again. Erika moved her hand out in front of her as if to signal a final command, as she exclaimed, "Leaf Storm!" Leaves flew out of Exeggutor as surrounding the Spearow in a whirlwind of leaves, causing her to fall out of the sky.

Jasper promptly withdrew his Spearow as Élodie announced, "Spearow is unable to battle! Gym Leader Erika is the winner!" Followed by a roaring applause from the spectators.

Jade and Ochre couldn't help but stare at each other and then back to Erika as she bowed to Jasper and proceeded back out of the door she came from. Jade snatched Ochre hand as she pulled him through Erika's door and into a small room with a single vase of flowers on a table, Erika kneeling before it.

"Erika!" Jade yelled, "That was amazing!"

Erika held her hand up as if to tell Jade to stop praising her. "I do appreciate it." She continued to go back to moving her flowers, making sure the branches and stems were stretched up toward the sky.

Ochre coughed once before finally opening his mouth. "How can you be so… calm?" He asked. "And so confident?"

Erika giggled a little, turning her head behind her to face him. "So you know my secret?" She asked, almost as if it were a rhetorical question.

Jade looked at Ochre and then back to Erika.

"I was like you once upon a time, Ochre. I lacked any kind of confidence." She stood up from her floral arrangement, walking toward them. "I became a gym leader very young, and while I had skill and talent, I lacked the motivation and the security of knowing that I could handle a situation. That led to my losing many of my first battles as Celadon's Gym Leader."

Jade gained a puzzled look on her face, "So, what happened?"

"That was when I met Ochre's mother, Isabel." She explained, "She was still very new to Celadon, and was kind enough to slap me back into reality. She told me that the most important thing a person can do is to be confident in themselves, even if they had their own doubts. She even came to one of my matches after that, screaming louder for me than anyone else. I faked it." She giggled, "And I won."

"You faked it?" Ochre asked.

"My certainty in victory." She giggled once more, turning her head, pointing toward the floral arrangement. "Battling is like floral arrangement. Many times, the arrangement isn't natural, nor is it completely stable. The important thing is to make it look as if it's natural and secured, even if it isn't in reality. That's the way to achieve true beauty."

She looked to the two of them again, bowing. "I chose you two to accompany each other because you both have amazing skill, but I feel as if you beautifully complement each other." Ochre and Jade both started to blush. She giggled once more, kneeling back down in front of her floral arrangement.

"I will have a double battle with you two tomorrow morning as soon as the sun rises. I hope to see your confidence soaring through the roof." Erika said, waving them away. The two trainers shuffled quickly out of the room, trying hard to contain their excitement.


	8. Bloom

The sun peaked over the distant mountains as the first rays of light creeped into the battlefield. Erika was already on one side as well as Jade and Ochre on the opposite. Erika was dressed in her full kimono again, this time a blue one with white flowers around the bottom half, swooping up behind her back.

"Are you two ready?" Erika asked the two trainers.

Ochre and Jade looked at each other, giving the other a wink before turning their heads back toward Erika and nodding, each one of them throwing out their pokéballs. Pascal and Leafeon looked just as determined to win as Jade and Ochre. Erika smiled and threw out two pokéballs. Out of one, as expected, came her Exeggutor. Out of the other, a Vileplume.

Jade was the first to leap into action, who yelled toward Leafeon. "Quick attack, Charity! Charge toward Vileplume!" She scream, as her Leafeon ran with lightning speed toward the Vileplume. Erika raised her hand to counter with her Exeggutor. "Confusion." The Exeggutor stomped its feet again, directing its attack toward the Leafeon. Ochre yelled, "Power Whip!" As Pascal raised one of his vines up in the air, it grew to a much inflated size and fell down upon the Exeggutor, whose psychic assault was halted.

Leafeon managed to land its attack on Vileplume, whose flower started to glow while it was catching itself after being knocked back. Erika commanded, "Solarbeam!" As its flower shot forth a beam of light toward the Leafeon that had just attacked it. "Charity, Protect!" Jade screamed as a thin barrier appeared around Charity and the Solarbeam exploded directly in front of the pokémon. Exeggutor ran up to the Leafeon coming in for a Stomp attack, in turn shattering the barrier that was surrounding Charity. The Leafeon fell backwards onto the ground, too shaken to stand up immediately, as the Exeggutor and Vileplume both turned toward Pascal.

Vileplume and Exeggutor both inched toward Pascal as Erika shook her head, looking at the two trainers. "Maybe you two weren't ready for this." She remarked as she commanded both of her pokémon simultaneously. "Exeggutor, use Wood Hammer! Vileplume, Petal Blizzard!" The Exeggutor started to charge as the Vileplume shot petals into the air, which began to glow.

Jade's fear turned into confidence as she came up with a plan to quickly turn the tables on Erika. She gritted her teeth together as she exclaimed, "Charity, use Giga Drain on Exeggutor!" The Leafeon began to glow as it seemed to sap energy from the Exeggutor, who was stuck in position. The Leafeon finally was able to regain enough strength from draining the pokémon to get up.

Erika's eyes opened wide in surprise. "Oh!" Her eyes darted at all of the glowing petals now in the air around Vileplume. "Vilepl-!" She started to yell until the petals swirled around the entire battlefield. Engulfing every pokémon, including her own Exeggutor. The petal storm whipped up a cloud of dust from the ground and once it settled, her Exeggutor and Charity had both been knocked unconscious, leaving only Pascal and Vileplume standing.

Erika almost screamed as she saw her unconscious pokémon. She held out her pokéball and withdrew it, kissing the pokéball as she had once before. Her surprised expression turned into one of pride and joy. "I'm proud of you, Jade! You've gotten over your fear of losing to think of your partner!" Erika yelled across the field. "But it's time we finished this battle, Ochre!" She went once again into her previous stance as the Vileplume stood ready to combat.

The Vileplume was unscathed, while Pascal had managed to endure the Petal Blizzard. "Vileplume, Petal Dance!" The Vileplume started to dance around, throwing petal after petal toward the Tangela, each one becoming more and more powerful.

"Bind!" Ochre commanded his Tangela as its vines reached out, being knocked away by the petals, and not being quick enough to grab the Vileplume. Ochre couldn't help but feel helpless and his confidence only fell as his Tangela continued to be hurt by the barrage. He felt Jade's eyes upon him, waiting to hear her tell him how awful he was doing.

"You can do it, Ochre!" she yelled to his surprise. Ochre didn't know how he would be able to beat the Vileplume, but there was still one last idea that he had. Since he had come to the gym, he had learned many things from watching the other trainers and listening to their conversations. He hadn't been able to get very much one-on-one battle practice in, but he became determined to show Erika what he could really do.

"Ancient Power!" Ochre screamed, as the Tangela started to glow. Rocks came up from the ground and were hurled at the Vileplume, causing its Petal Dance to cease. Pascal continued to glow, and grow to a much larger size, arms stretching out of its body. Erika's eyes opened wide once more and a smile grew across her face. "Tangrowth…," she muttered. Ochre excitedly commanded, "Power Whip!" As the Tangrowth's arm grew out and came down upon the Vileplume, knocking it out cold.

Jade once again exploded with delight, wrapping her arms around Ochre as Erika withdrew her final pokémon. Pascal came up to the both of them and, for the first time, was able to hug his best friend.

Erika walked toward the two and joined in the embrace as they celebrated their victory, not only of a pokémon match, but overcoming their personal fears.

Erika stepped back and straightened her kimono out. "I am so proud of both of you. I knew you would both be able to defeat me from the moment I invited you to my gym." The two young trainers were once again embarrassed by the leader's compliments.

She turned to Ochre, extending a hand which was holding a Rainbow Badge. "Ochre, you have gained the self-confidence that your mother had taught to me so many years ago. My debt has been repaid." She smiled as kissed his cheek.

She then moved to Jade, doing the same motion and giving her a Rainbow Badge as well. "Jade, you have proven yourself not only a talented trainer, but one who can selflessly help others in their time of need." She beamed and gave her a kiss on the cheek as well.

"You two are welcome at my gym any time you would like, though I don't think you'll be having much time for that." Erika said, feigning that she was deep in thought.

"What do you mean?" The two almost asked simultaneously.

"I have already recommended you two to the Ranger Academy, and that Rainbow Badge will be your entry key." She winked as she turned around, heading back to her personal quarters.

"You mean?!" Ochre asked in almost an accusing tone.

"Get moving. You'll be late to your first day if you don't start to get ready." Erika turned around once more, giggled and then closed the door behind her.

Ochre and Jade embraced each other once more, then quickly ran out of the gym on to a new adventure.


	9. Book II - Kalos: Four Years Later

**Book II: Kalos **

"I'm glad your mother was able to see how far you've come, Ochre."

That was what Erika had said to Ochre after they said one final goodbye to his mother, Isabel. It had been four years since Ochre had earned his Rainbow Badge, and four years since he began his journey as a Pokémon Ranger. Four years without any issue, and suddenly his mother had died. They didn't even know she was sick at the time, but it was such a sudden death, that even the family began to question what the actual cause was.

Ochre didn't want to be there anymore, he didn't even want to be in Kanto, it was just too painful.

Ochre strolled around the quiet ranch, still dressed in his formal black. He had achieved his dream of becoming a Pokémon Ranger, but he had lost his drive. His father and younger brother were both inside of the now-emptier ranch house, trying to make sense of what had just occurred. A familiar face pulled up the dirt road of the ranch house, and got out. It was his friend and partner, Jade.

"Ochre, I… I came as soon as I could." She said, stumbling out of one of the ranger vehicles. It was a compact off-road vehicle with no doors and a roof that solely existed for inclement weather. She was still dressed in her standard red Ranger uniform, fresh off of an assignment. Typically, they were assigned with each other, but because of Ochre's loss, he was granted a leave of absence. Jade finally made her way up to Ochre and pulled him into a long embrace, kissing his cheek. The two had gotten much closer over the years, becoming the best of friends and excellent Rangers. They had travelled all over the Kanto region together, usually just on patrol, but occasionally it times of crisis they would be put to the test. Whether it was a rescue mission, a suspected criminal act, or just conservation, they learned to handle any situation together.

"We buried her this morning. She looked so peaceful." Ochre said, his voice muffled by Jade's hair.

"You know she was proud of you, Ochre. You'll make it though, she wouldn't want you moping around." The two let go of each other and sat on the front steps of the ranch house.

"Jade, can I ask something of you?"

"Anything, Ochre."

"It's going to be big. Really big."

"Try me."

"I can't stay in Kanto anymore."

Jade's eyes widened. "That _is_ big. We're stationed here, and you know we've got our duty."

"I put in a request when I found out my mother was terminal. I just got a letter this morning accepting my request of transfer. I need you to go with me."

Jade stood up, visibly bothered by her comrade's request.

"You expect me to drop everything and go with you?! I know you're having a hard time, but running away from your problems isn't gonna help anything!" Jade started to storm off, holding her hand up against her forehead as if easing a headache. She got halfway to her vehicle, and then marched straight back to Ochre.

"Jade, I _have _to." His eyes and head motioned toward the door of the ranch house. "They can't know about it."

"Ochre, you can't just expect someone to up and leave with you when you get a crazy idea in your head. That's disrespectful and it's absolutely uncalled for!" Jade's eyebrows narrowed.

"I'm going to Kalos."

Jade's eyelid twitched, "_KALOS?!" _She yelled, and promptly quieted down.

"It's as far away as possible. I just _can't _stay here anymore. I… I don't know how I'll deal with it. The Rangers have accepted my transfer, and accepted the transfer of a partner of my choosing, and I can't do it without you."

"Ochre Giftegard, do you think that I would ever travel halfway around the world suddenly for _anyone_?!" Jade screamed.

Ochre frowned and shook his head.

"Good, because I wouldn't." She paused for a moment before sighing. "But if anything happened to you over there, I would never forgive myself."

Ochre perked up a little bit. Jade responded, "I guess I don't have too much of a choice."

Ochre stood straight up, staring Jade straight in the eyes. "You know that you don't have to do this…"

Jade playfully smacked Ochre across his face. "Stupid." She turned around, her hair blowing past his face, and hopped back into her vehicle. "Just let me know when!" She yelled out before speeding back down the road, returning to the Celadon Ranger Station.

Ochre smiled briefly before turning back to his reality. He turned around to go into the house when he saw his father standing in the doorway.

"Ochre, you're really leaving?" He asked with a face of dread, very much unlike his usual happy-go-lucky self, even considering the circumstances.

Ochre couldn't say anything, but just gave a weak nod.

Crim stepped out of the house and placed a hand on his eldest son's shoulder. "I don't know why, but I am certain you have your reasons. Just don't forget where you came from, Son… And don't tell your brother. He's too heartbroken right now as it is, if he finds this out now, it'd kill him." Crim sniffed a little before heading back into the house, followed by Ochre.

Making his way up the stairs, Ochre walked into his room, remembering being in the room with his mother.

_Son... if anything should happen to me, I want you to go away. Far away, and live your dreams._

_I understand, Mother._


End file.
